barton



E. A. BARTON. FRUIT-GATHERER. No. 174,760. Patented Mmhm, 187e..

llllll NPE'ER PHOTO ITHOGRAPIIER WASHINGTON D C fig. .2.

vwireB is passed and made fast.

EDWIN A. BARTON, oFIBooNvILLE, INDIANA.

v|ilvrrllafzofI/fewnam1' N2-@Einelrsewmeafen's.

`Specification-formingpart of LettersP-atentNo. 1743-760, datedMarch-14, 1876 ;-'application filed January. 5,1876.

ville, in 'the county of `llVarri'ck ..andState`of Indiana, haveinvented .certainnew and; useful f Improvement in* Fruit-Gatherers 5.and "Ldo, hereby'declar'e 'that'the followingis.-al'ull .and j sexactldescription .therof, reference" being'fhad" ying "drawings,l.making a to the accom pan vpart of this specification.

AMy `invention'trelatesfto thatv class o f implements known asfruit-gatherers. It `has-,for its object to vrender such implements1sis'imple and economic in construction,and'eieieiit-"inmetallic headand the operating wire or rod attached to a portion of the movable jawor griper, and Fig. is -a detailed top or end view,r with movable jaw orgri'per broken away, in order to expose its connection with the metallichead. f

Similar letters indicate like parts in the severall figures.

A represents the handle, usually made from twelve to fifteen feet inlength', or such other length as may be deemed advisable. This handle Ais cut away on one side longitudinally, to form an inclined grooveorchannel, a, gradually' increasing in depth as it approaches the top endot' the handle, in order to furnish room for the necessary vibration ofthe upper en'd ofthe operatingrod or wire B, as will be presentlyexplained.. l This groove begins at about that pointat which the handleis graspedwhen being used, and the handle is providedat that point andon the opposite side to the grove a with a rocking lever, C, having axed arm, D, passing through a mortise, and provided at its extremitywith a hole through which the lower extremity of'- the O is pivoted at bto suitable ears or bearings upon a plate, E. The lever (l is designedto be grasped by the hand, and the pivot b is so located with referenceto the length and de- 'Ihis lever sign ,of .the .lever that'itfshall'liejunderfthe middle or third `vfIngerf0r-"that l portion'f-oi' the handwhich is., practicallyl at-rest,rin order'that 'the limplement' maybe`rmly grasped and hfeld, v-whilegtheffngers onleither side of n thepivotatpointbmlayibeused to ro'ckthelever'G, forthepurpose-ofo'pera'tin` gthe moving vgriper.

ft. over-'the upper gend fof 'the handle, 1 and "to vvith- -two ears,HH, provided wth'holes, or bearings `for the ends ol' the frame Iof thelmoving jaw. The 'frames G and I are preferably made of wire ofsuitablesize, ,the ends of the'former beingfsecured by solder orotherwise within the holes. designed to re- 'ceive them, and the endsofthe latter, after passing through the bearings inthe ears HH, varevbent up at about right angles' vto form a crank or lever-arm, asclearly seen'in the drawing, and being` furnished with an eye or holethrough which a pin or pivot, c, passes,- tosecure the ends to theA endof .the wire B, so that the raising. or lowering ofthe wirenB will openor close the movable jaw'frame I.

' k is a spiral spring, having an upwardly-pro? jecting tongue inthe'center, and the two ends of the wire forming the spring returned andfastenedin the end of the handle A, as clearly shown in Fig-1, so thatvthe tongue d, bearing against the inside` of the wire B,- will tend to.throw the frame Iinto the position shown,

and thus' automatically open the mouth of the implement rwhen pressureis removed from the lever U above the pivot b. L is a canvas or otherfabric covering ofthe frames G I, formed l Ainto a tube or eonduitbelowthe heady F,and extending down to about the pivot b, or any votherdesirable point, and being provided, at

or near its extremity 'with a gathering-strap, f

M, for the purpose'of contracting the lo'wer end of tube to prevent theescape of the fruit dropping therein, until such time as it is 'vdesirable to empty the contents ofthe tube into suitable receptacles. Nis a- 'tongueieee of canvas arran ed as shown onthein- P a 7 s side ofthe frame I, and designed to cover the head F and its connections withthe frame I, so that they are 'protected against any falling twigs whichmight otherwise enter and affect the operation of the griper-jaw. Thewire B is held loosely ywithin its groove in the handle by suitablestaples e, at proper distances apart. As the upper end of the wirev Bvibrates through a greater distance than its.

lower end, the necessity of gradually increasing the depth of the groovea will beobvious. In the operation of the implement, the'handle isgrasped, las before described, so that the lingers will lie over thelever C, the upper end oli which is drawn towardthe handle, which hasthe effect of closing the frame lIhagainst the frame G.l The upper endis then directed toxthe piece of fruit to be taken from the tree,

when, ,the upper end of the lever C being released, the frame I recedesfrom the frame G, and forms, as it were, an open mouth, into vijhich'thepiece of fruit enters, when the frame Iis again closed, and the, pieceof fruit being securely enveloped the implement is suitably manipulatedto break the stem and allow the fruit vto drop into and d own thetube-chau- `nel. The` flight oi' thefruit down the channel may beretarded by tightening the cloth L, which. in consequence of thelposition .of the fraaie `er,brings it "close to the handle A, and

thus contracts the conduit. This is some-A times desirable, in orderthat one piece of nfruit may not be dropped upon another with such forceas to injure o r bruise the same. 4

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a fruitgatherer, the combination, with the movable jaw-frame ofthe handle A, prop vided, withlan inclined groove, the wire B, androcking lever C, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore setforth.

2. The metallic head F, adapted to l[it upon the end of the handle,provided with suitable holes to receive the ends of the stationary"frame, and having ears or bearings to receive the ends of the movingframes, substantially 'as and for the purposes set forth.

3. The lever C, constructed substantially as described, and pivotedtothe handle, so that `the center of movement shallbe under that portionof the hand at rest during the movement of .the lever. i

Witness'my hand and seal this .5th day of "January, 1876.

EDWIN A.,'BARTON' [L. S51

Witnesses?- l f EDW. W; DoNN, y

F; B. G'RoFF.

